Cabela's and dehydrators

[preparing]

They have several dehydrators. I went there today and I saw the Gardenmaster Dehydrator 1000 watt and it is $149 with 4 trays and you can buy extra up to 30 trays. I also saw the Cabela's commercial dehydrator for $300 and a bigger one for $400. They make the Gardenmaster look like a toy. It it a 1600 watt. The 1600 watt over the 1000 watt, is it that much better, or just more dehydrator than I really need?

 

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...=cat570005&rid=

 

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templa...=cat570005&rid=

[Kevin B 123]

I have a 10 drawer dehydrator, and sometimes I need need 1 or 2 more, just for I type of produce: If I could have afforded the BIG one from Cabela's , I would have done so: A basket of apples in done in 2 days!!!! My 10 drawer, Good4You, would take at least 5 or 6 days.

 

If you make jerky the cabela's big one is the way to go....Any hunter would say so, all my friends I know who hunt, own 2 or 3 small dehydrators, and talk about getting that BIGGIE....

[preparing]

I am trying to figure out the best way to store food that works for me. I have a job at home and I homeschool. It seems dehydrating would take less time. Also, I have thousands of canning jars, so when I do not have a garden going I could go to the store and buy a head of cabbage for fresh eating and a head to dehydrate, a sack of potatoes to eat and a sack to dehydrate,and during the summer do the garden and buy food cheap at vegetable stands, it seems that I would be getting a lot of food stored and also take less space. Since the food all shrinks then a quart of vegetables dehydrated would be more food than just a quart canned. What you said makes sense and really I should just save another $100 and get the biggie biggie for $400. It is twice as big as the 80 liter. I could use this money for other things, so $400 is big to me, but might be worth the wait. But then storing the food where it is cool to get a long-term storage life. How many jars would a basket of apples fill?

[HSmom]

According to my (rather old) Excalibur book, 12 pounds of apples dehydrate to 1.25 pounds or three pints. If you purchase small apples, they are usually about 1/2 pound each. The really over-sized ones can be close to 1 pound each. So for 12 pounds of apples, picture 24 of the small "schoolboy" apples . . . fitting into three PINT jars!

 

Now you know why I dehydrate so much.

 

A few other facts for you (weights in pounds, volume in pints):

 

Item...Wet Weight...Dry Weight...Dry Volume

Beans, snap...6...1/2...2.5

Carrots...15...1.25...2-4

Greens...3...0.25...5.5

Pears...14...1.5...3 (if pears are quartered)

Pumpkin...11...0.75...3.5

Tomatoes...14...0.5...2.5-3

 

[preparing]

This is the answer for me. I want to eat food fresh during the summer and while the world is going on eat fresh stuff from the store, but I also want to stock up for more than a year. A year of canned goods seems enough to me. You rotate that and things still have nutrition of some sort. I want more than a year supple of seasonings and cooking supplies. I have enough flour for a year or more, but I want to stop buying that and start storing grains and get a grinder. Just stop the flour and stuff from the store, and store several years supple of wheat and corn, and other grains. Have the freezers full and all that, but for long-term just turn the extra garden stuff and bulk fruit and bargain stuff into dehydrated food. That is just amazing that 12 pounds of apples would fit in 3 jars!

[Kevin B 123]

I looked at the Gardenmaster, and I like the wattage but not the round trays, as they require rotation. I choose a square model because I can take out all ( or some) of the drawers and use the box to raise breads. I can place a pan of water in the bottom, and a shelf or two above & get 2 loaves rising. I just place a piece of plexiglas over the opening.

 

Because these electric Home-use dehydrators are generally plastic, which conducts temperature, thus a loss of heat with in, I am building a ply-wood box to place the dehydrator in, It works more efficiently. The box will be double walled, just like the old-time solar dehydrators our gand parents may have used. – If you are handy, you might wish to make a box of your own. A shipping crate of wood could do the trick, if it’s of a size that fits the dehydrator you do choose!

 

I came real close to getting the 160 liter unit from Cabela’s, but choose to get BOTH a Kitchenaid Stand Mixer & a dehydrator, rather then having to wait on one or the other.

[Vlynn]

I have an Excalibur (9 tray). It holds quite a bit-like a dishpan full of roma tomatoes or apples. It's this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Excalibur-2900-9-T...24337333&sr=8-3

 

It is a lot less work than canning. I like that the plastic mesh liners come off the trays to be washed. I've used it to raise bread, too. Next I want to try making yogurt in it.

 

I have had it two years, and it's paid for itself many times over.

 

 

 

[Kevin B 123]

Oh yeah, a dehydrator will indeed pay for itself, in the cost of food we did not throw away! Considering too, if we get 2 bags of _____ for the price of 1, a harvest -end sale, etc. Ect., we have saved the food budget major wear & tear. and the money we save can go else where....... Yep a dehydrator is a wise investment!

 

 

[LeeAnn]

Hi All:

 

A few weeks ago I started a tread asking for opinions on Food Dehydrators. There were a number of opinions offered. I couldn't find my original thread but this one will be just fine.

 

This is just an update - my choice was narrowed between an Excalaber and a L'Equip. I have just ordered the L'Equip.

 

The reason - L'Equip has a 12 year warranty and the Excalaber has a one year warranty.

[Kevin B 123]

Ahh, I looked at the L'Equip, while shopping, settled on a cheaper unit, a 10 drawer unit, which I like a lot.

 

 

 

Let us know who you like yours.